Weekly Satellite Report

There have been unconfirmed reports on the amsat-bb remailer that SO-50 has
shifted downlink frequency as much as 5khz up. This both from Europe.

To switch the transmitter on, you need to send a CTCSS tone of 74.4
Hz. The order of operation is thus: (allow for Doppler as necessary)

1) Transmit on 145.850 MHz with a tone of 74.4 Hz to arm the 10 minute timer on board the spacecraft.
2) Now transmit on 145.850 MHz (FM Voice) using 67.0 Hz to PT the repeater on and off within the 10 Minute window.
3) Sending the 74.4 tone again within the 10 minute window will reset the 10 minute timer.

Detailed Description

SO-50 carries several experiments, including a mode J FM amateur
repeater experiment operating on 145.850 MHz uplink and 436.800 MHz
downlink. The repeater is available to amateurs worldwide as power
permits, using a 67.0 Hertz PL tone on the uplink, for on-demand
activation. SO-50 also has a 10 minute timer that must be armed before
use. Transmit a 2 second carrier with a PL tone of 74.4 to arm the
timer.

Recent reports indicate the downlink often deviates lower than the published frequency of 436.795.

The repeater consists of a miniature VHF receiver with sensitivity of
-124dBm, having an IF bandwidth of 15 KHz. The receive antenna is a 1/4
wave vertical mounted in the top corner of the spacecraft. The receive
audio is filtered and conditioned then gated in the control electronics
prior to feeding it to the 250mW UHF transmitter. The downlink antenna
is a 1/4 wave mounted in the bottom corner of the spacecraft and canted
at 45 degrees inward.